Midway, Parkway merge for Sun Belt push

Two real estate titans are joining forces to expand their reach across the Sun Belt.

Houston-based Midway Holdings and Orlando-based Parkway Property Investments have formed a new enterprise called Parkway Ventures, the Houston Business Journal reported. Jayson Lipsey of Parkway and Jamie Bryant of Midway will lead the company as co-CEOs, while Brad Freels and James Heistand serve as co-chief executive chairmen.

Midway is behind a number of megadevelopments, including the 37-acre CityCentre in West Houston and East River in the Fifth Ward.

The combined company will own, operate or have under development 45 million square feet in Texas, Florida, Georgia, Virginia, Arizona, Colorado and California. The new firm will focus on mixed-use and redevelopment projects. 

Parkway has mostly grown through acquisitions, while Midway has focused on building ground-up development to build its business. Rising interest rates and construction costs have hampered some of Midway’s projects, though.

“It’s very expensive to develop (in today’s environment). But there’ll be opportunities to acquire a lot of great properties we believe,” Freels told the outlet. “We have scale that can take advantage of the opportunities that the market is going to present to us for the next three to five years.”

The new venture chose to use the “Parkway” name because it’s better known on a national level. Parkway Ventures will also allow Midway to expand its presence across the South, given Parkway’s strong reputation in that part of the country.

—Quinn Donoghue